


Cinnamon, Cloves, and Citrus

by UberDuper



Category: New Dangan Ronpa V3: Everyone's New Semester of Killing
Genre: Alternate Universe - Non-Despair (Dangan Ronpa), F/F, Secret Santa, mistletoe kiss
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-25
Updated: 2018-12-25
Packaged: 2019-09-26 21:42:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,034
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17149598
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/UberDuper/pseuds/UberDuper
Summary: “Wh-” Maki’s face grew red, and her eyes widened in mortification. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Kirumi stiffen at the stove. “We’re not… we’re not flirting.”“No, certainly not.” Kirumi said, sounding uncertain and refusing to turn around.or:Maki spends her winter holiday back at the orphanage, and she's made the biggest mistake of her life in letting even one of her classmates know where it is. Also: Gonta is easy to trick and Kokichi likes to prank his friends.





	Cinnamon, Cloves, and Citrus

**Author's Note:**

> Heyo! This is a secret santa present for @the0takuness on Tumblr, said event being run by the amazing crew at @wlw-danganronpa-secretsanta, on Tumblr as well! Anyways, hope y'all enjoy the piece!

Maki Harukawa calmly stood amidst the chaos of the Burnt Oak Orphanage’s common room, a child mounted on her hip and another clutching at her free hand. There were shouts from children running amok, as well as the coos and awestruck gasps from the children posted at the windows, admiring the fat snowflakes that descended from the sky slowly, despite their size. It was winter, and things like this were commonplace around this time of year. However… there was something different this winter, and this time… this time, it was all Maki’s fault.

One of the children screeched happily, sprinting past Maki. He was quickly followed by a much larger child, one Kaito Momota. “Get back here, you little punk!” Kaito shouted, purposely moving slowly so that he didn’t catch up to the boy. At that, Maki’s frown only grew larger, her eyes tracking Kaito as he jogged after the kid, only to have another jump onto his back. After a few more kids, the Ultimate Astronaut was taken down, rendered prone as a bunch of children sat on his back and hit him with pillows and socks.

“Hey, careful with him.” Maki snapped. The kids piled onto Kaito stopped swinging briefly to listen to her before going back to whacking him, their swings slightly less intense.

Maki shook her head in annoyance. This was honestly the last thing she wanted. A glance over to the ratty couch revealed Himiko, sleepily performing card tricks while a handful of children, as well as Tenko and Angie, watched in awe. Rantaro had one child on his shoulders, two other clinging to his feet as he laughed and slowly plodded around the room. Maki blinked. It was… a while since she’d seen the orphanage this upbeat. Then again, it’d been a while since she’d last been here.

“Come on.” Maki said simply, addressing the child attached to her arm. She began moving, the kid on her hip tightening her grip on Maki’s shirt. There were a few of her ‘friends’ that were unaccounted for (one little brat in particular), which made Maki more nervous than anything else. She stalked through the orphanage’s halls, keeping an eye and ear out for any more of her classmates.

A five minute search revealed nothing, much to Maki’s chagrin. This wasn’t good. If she couldn’t find-

“Miss Harukawa?” The child attached to her arm asked, looking up at her. “I’m hungry.”

“...can it wait?” Maki asked, brow furrowing. The kid simply shook his head, and Maki sighed. “Fine. Let’s go to the kitchen.” He smiled at her, prompting Maki to purse her lips and nod. The three made their way towards the kitchen. Each step closer filled the hallway with the smell of spices and sweetness, a strange contrast of smells that nonetheless made a warmth well up in Maki’s chest.

Pushing the kitchen door open released a blast of warmth that gently swooshed over Maki, her nose suddenly filled with a variety of subtle scents. It gave the modest room a sense of warmth and homeyness that it didn’t normally have. Two figures stood in the small kitchen, one quickly yet elegantly darting around, tending to a multitude of pots, pans, bowls, and plates. The other sat quietly at the kitchen table, frosting cookies.

“Hi.” Maki said, announcing her presence. The two figures looked up, and Kirumi Tojo smiled at Maki from her place at the stove. Korekiyo nodded at her from the table, going back to his meticulous work. The boy on Maki’s arm detached himself, scampering over to watch Korekiyo do his thing.

“Hello Maki.” Kirumi greeted once Maki approached, smiling softly even as she spiced something she was mixing together. “I’m pleased to see you.” She glanced to the side, expression quickly dipping into a frown. “My apologies about the mess.”

“Don’t worry about it.” Maki replied just as quick. “’s not like this place is any cleaner half the time.”

Kirumi chuckled, turning back to her cooking. “Excuse my presumptuousness, but I can’t imagine it would be. Not if you’re taking care of things here.”

Maki pressed her lips together, feeling a bit of warmth rising to her cheeks. Her free hand went up, grabbing at one of her pigtails. “I don’t do that kinda stuff. I just take care of the kids. And I’ve been at school, so it isn’t even me cleaning up anything.”

“Perhaps.” Kirumi said, leaning over slightly to smell something in one of the pots on the stove. She nodded, then sprinkled something into it. “You’re rather adamant about not letting me talk you up.”

At that, Maki felt embarrassment welling up in her chest, and she looked away from the Ultimate Maid. “I’m not.” She stated simply, turning her body slightly so the kid on her hip was blocking Kirumi from direct line of sight. “I’m just saying that it isn’t me doing all the stuff you’re saying I am.”

“My apologies.” Kirumi laughed quietly under her breath, a smile sticking to her face.

“Don’t apologize.” Maki huffed. “I’m just being dumb.”

“Are you now?” Kirumi asked, “I hadn’t noticed.”

“You know,” Korekiyo chimed in from his position at the table. Maki glanced up, finding him gingerly placing his frosting caked plastic knife onto the table. The boy that had come with her was next to Korekyio, nibbling on a cookie. “I do feel a bit like a third wheel here. If the flirting is going to continue, I may take my leave shortly. Not that I encourage you to stop, mind you, courting rituals are fascinating, but I do not want to become something akin to an awkward presence or worse, an obstruction.”

“Wh-” Maki’s face grew red, and her eyes widened in mortification. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Kirumi stiffen at the stove. Before she could watch much more, Maki felt the child on her hip reach up and place a hand against her cheek, giggling quietly at the heat. “We’re not… we’re not _flirting_.”

“No, certainly not.” Kirumi said, sounding uncertain and refusing to turn around.

“...If not, I was certainly fooled.” Korekiyo replied, and Maki could _hear_ the smirk under his mask. “Either way, these cookies have been frosted with meticulous care, and I shall leave anyway, before I myself fall to temptation.” He stood up smoothly, towering over the child with the cookie. He looked down at the young boy, who stared up at him. “Might I ask your name, young man?”

“Taro.” The kid replied around a mouthful of cookie.

“Well, Taro, what do you say the two of us find something to do that is elsewhere?” Korekiyo asked.

“...” Taro thought it over, then nodded. “Okay.” He reached up and grabbed Korekiyo’s hand, and the Ultimate Anthropologist seemed surprised at the contact. “What’s ‘elsewhere’?”

“It is a place that is not here.” Korekiyo told him, and started moving them out of the kitchen.

“What’s ‘here’?”

“Kukuku… a very interesting question...” Korekiyo began talking about something that Maki tuned out, and his voice was soon cut off by the kitchen door swinging shut.

An awkward silence settled over the kitchen. The once comforting warm air in the kitchen now felt humid and stuffy. Maki let out a light sigh, picking at her shirt. She shifted the child to her other hip, and absentmindedly stared at the ceiling. Kirumi seemed suddenly intensely interested in cooking, making no sound as she fiddled with the various dishes she was making.

“I wasn’t trying to flirt.” Maki said flatly, breaking the silence.

“Nor was I.” Kirumi was quick to reply.

“Good.” Maki said. “That we cleared that up.” She quickly tacked on. “I wouldn’t try to flirt.”

“Indeed?” Was Kirumi’s curt reply, sounding… forlorn? Maki frowned.

“I mean. That’s not what I meant.” Is what she settled on. “I wouldn’t. Because of your… duty.”

“Yes.” Kirumi said. “I live to serve. It would be… silly, to find a romantic attachment.”

“Yeah. Same here.” Maki replied, a frown growing on her face. “I need to take care of the kids. I don’t want to… get distracted or anything.”

“Of course. I feel the same way about my own work.”

“Good.” Maki managed. Good. Right? Yeah. Neither of them had the time to be dating anybody. And Maki knew she didn’t have the… emotional capacity for it. Neither did Kirumi, it seemed. They had so much in common.

That thought suddenly sent Maki reeling. They had so much in common. They understood each other. They…

“I should go.” Maki said, cutting off her own train of thought. “Because-”

“You feel as though you should watch the children.” Kirumi finished.

“Yeah, of course. I don’t want to… interrupt your cooking. You’re busy.” Maki stated.

“Yes.” Kirumi nodded, then turned to look over her shoulder at the same time Maki hazarded a glance. The two made eye contact, and Maki felt herself relax. She saw Kirumi’s rigid posture become more natural, and the two were quiet before Kirumi spoke up again. “If you are not busy with the children, I certainly would not object to help here in the kitchen. I trust you are familiar with what the children like.”

“...yeah, I could help, I guess.” Maki shrugged, glancing away again.

“I would welcome it.” Kirumi told her.

Before Maki could make a movement to leave, however, the kitchen door swung open slightly, and two heads popped into view. Maki found her lips curling up into a sneer at the sight of Kokichi grinning at her, and Angie being there as well certainly wasn’t making her feel any better about the situation.

“Hey, mom.” Kokichi said.

“Yaha! Hello Maki!” Angie greeted.

“Please do not call me that.” Kirumi sighed, while Maki just snorted at Angie.

“Hey, can you come help me?” Kokichi asked innocently. “I spilled paint in the hallway.”

“Are you serious?” Maki snapped, glaring. “Why do you have paint in the first place?”

“Atua told Angie that she should bring paint, in case the children wanted to create something colorful!” Angie informed her. “But Atua did not account for Kokichi’s clumsiness!”

“Sorry! Just because I’m a supreme leader of evil doesn’t mean I don’t have my flaws!” Kokichi laughed. He turned his ‘innocent’ gaze back to Kirumi. “Mom, can you pretty please help me? You too, Maki Roll!”

“I thought I told you not to call me that.” “Don’t call me that.” Kirumi and Maki said at the same time. They glanced at each other, and Maki quickly looked away.

“Very well.” Kirumi sighed, placing a ladle down and smoothing out her apron. “But I must be quick. I do not want the soup to boil over.”

“This will only take a second.” Kokichi assured her, ducking out of the kitchen, Angie quickly following. The door clacked shut, and Maki could hear laughter on the other side.

“Eugh.” She groaned. “That little b...” Maki trailed off, glancing at the child on her hip out of the corner of her eye. “...oy… better hope that mess he made isn’t too big.”

“Indeed.” Kirumi nodded in agreement.

The two moved towards the door together, and Kirumi gently opened it up. Maki, lost in thought, barely processed the familiar voice of Gonta Gokuhara quietly saying ‘hold like this?’. By the time she had, the door was already open, and she walked face first into the Ultimate Entomologist’s broad chest. Kirumi had stopped in time, frowning at Gonta’s large frame blocking their exit from the kitchen.

Maki took a step back, standing next to Kirumi, and glanced around. To the side of Gonta, hiding behind him, were Kokichi and Angie, giggling at each other in such a way that Maki knew that she had walked right into whatever bullshit they were planning. To her side was Kirumi, staring straight up. And to her front was Gonta, who was looking down at her and grinning while holding something over her head.

Maki’s eyes instinctively followed his arm, following all the way up to the sprig of greenery held delicately between his index finger and thumb. She didn’t process what it was at first, staring blankly at the rounded green leaves. Gonta had a wide, innocent grin on his face as he proudly shouted something that filled Maki with dread.

“Happy Mistletoe!” Gonta proclaimed, looking oh so proud of himself. “Kokichi tell Gonta that he can help friends by holding special plant for them! All he have to do is stand here and hold up mistletoe from them to stand under!”

“You heard him!” Kokichi followed, “Happy Mistletoe! You two know what to do, yeah?”

“...the paint?” Kirumi half-asked, sounding (for the first time Maki had ever heard) distracted.

“Oh, that was a lie!” Kokichi grinned. “Sorry, but I had to tell a little while lie in order to help Gonta help you two! Now, go on!”

Maki stared up at the sprig of mistletoe blankly. Yeah, she knew what was to be done under mistletoe. She’d done it before, given half assed cheek kisses because it was just some silly tradition. But this… was completely different. Because she’d never… _felt_ something when standing under the mistletoe with somebody. Gonta, Angie, and Kokichi looked on expectantly, while Maki felt her vision trained upwards, unbreaking. She couldn’t find it in herself to look at Kirumi.

And yet her head moved on its own volition, and her gaze adjusted to be pointing at the Ultimate Maid, who was still staring silently at the sprig of mistletoe held above them.

“Maybe...” Maki found herself saying. “Maybe we just get it over with. It’s… just a tradition thing. They won’t go away if we don’t.”

“Yes, of course...” Kirumi said, not moving her head.

“Remember!” Kokichi cut in. “No coward stuff! A big ol’ MWAH, right on the lips!”

“Yes, on lips!” Gonta repeated. “Wait, what on lips?”

“Just watch!” Kokichi told him.

Maki stared silently as Kirumi slowly adjusted, moving so her head was no longer staring straight up. Her movements seemed stiff, unsure, as she swiveled to face Maki. And Maki stared back, and found that a lump had formed in her throat and simply would not leave, even with a thick swallow. Kirumi looked just as composed as ever. Perhaps too composed.

Shuffling forward, Maki awkwardly shifted her position, bringing herself closer to Kirumi. The gentle smell of spice grew slightly stronger, and Maki found her jaw clenching in anticipation. She noticed Kirumi leaning forward (and slightly down) as well, and the two inched closer and closer together, and Maki’s eyes slipped shut.

The first thing Maki processed with that Kirumi’s lips were soft. They pressed gently against Maki’s own, and felt… right. Now that they were right up next to each other, Maki could smell a hint of citrus alongside the strong cinnamon and clove scents clinging to the Ultimate Maid, and there was a gentle warmth emanating from her that Maki chalked up to the warmth of the kitchen. After a second, a hand laid itself on her shoulder, and Maki leaned further into the kiss.

Maki had given and received many kisses on the lips before. All of them, however, were platonic, lasted for less than half a second, and none of them made her stomach flip, a strange warmth settling in her gut. This was strange, alien, weird… and it felt so right. Maki would never claim to be in touch with her emotions but this… this was something else entirely.

Time seemed to slow to a crawl as Maki drank in every aspect of the kiss she never thought she’d experience. An eternity ticked by, the only movements seeming to be the light movements of their lips and the gentle twitch of the hand on her shoulder.

“Um,” Gonta said.

With that single word spoken, Maki finally broke away, blinking in surprise. Just like always, her face was flat, though this time it was because the surprise and the feel of the kiss had knocked all of the emotion right out of her. She felt… warm. Like a soft glow had settled over her. Maki glanced to the side to see Gonta, Kokichi, and Angie staring at them, uncharacteristic looks of surprise on the latter two’s faces. Gonta had lowered his arm, and the three were standing stock still, not moving.

“M… my apologies.” Kirumi cut in, moving her hand away from Maki’s shoudler to smooth out her dress and adjust a lock of her hair. Her cheeks were tinged pink, and she looked even more distracted than before. “How unprofessional. That is my bad, I didn’t… realize.” Kirumi picked a piece of lint off of her shoulder and clasped her hands in front of her, her fingers drumming. “I believe I should take my leave. I need to finish preparing all of the food.” And just like that, she was gone, the kitchen door slamming shut behind her.

“...what are you guys looking at?” Maki asked, voice flat, glancing at the three students still there.

“G-Gonta… uh...” Gonta’s eyes frantically darted around, like a deer caught in headlights. “Gonta gonna go!”

“Yes… yes!” Angie chimed in. “Bye-onara!” The two of them scampered down the hall, turning the corner and disappearing from sight.

“...hmm.” Kokichi finally said.

“Was this stupid mistletoe thing your idea?” Maki snapped at him.

“...yeah. It was!” Kokichi replied, seeming to gain some of his composure. He clasped his hands behind his head and grinned. “I didn’t think I was gonna get something this exciting out of this, though. I guess you win this round, Maki Roll.” Before she could bite his head off, Kokichi was gone as well, dashing after Gonta and Angie.

“...” Maki watched him go. She stared down the hall, mind blank, until a small hand placed itself against her cheek. Maki glanced to the side, seeing the kid’s hand on her cheek. She pursed her lip and bounced the kid, eliciting a giggle. Maki couldn’t help the slight smile that rose onto her face as she straightened her back. “Happy Mistletoe.” She said to the kitchen door before walking off.

“...Happy Mistletoe, Maki.” The kitchen replied back, once Maki was gone.


End file.
